Tasman and Southland dress in remarkably similar colours but could hardly be having more contrasting seasons.
Wearing slightly different shades of maroon, it was remarkable that the players coped so well with the colour confusion at Landsdowne Park in Blenheim tonight (Wed) .
As it was, Southland made a start which belied their three-loss start to the season, though they finished in familiar fashion. Tasman, with excellent victories over Canterbury and Manawatu (and a close Ranfurly Shield defeat to Taranaki) under their belts, were error prone, something Stags' No8 Elliot Dixon, returning from a long-term chest injury, was keen to exploit.
But the now familiar frailties returned, Tasman scoring through Peter Betham, a wing who scored a 50m try in which he beat five would-be defenders with speed, balance, elusiveness and a fend reminiscent of Cory Jane.
With Tasman losing their early rust, they struck first after the break too, fullback Robbie Malneek taking advantage of a mismatch against prop Jamie Mackintosh.
